Are You An Asset or A Liability?

There are two types of people walking around on planet earth today. Just two. There are givers and there are takers. You know what I mean. The question is – which one are you?

Time for a Change?

The other day on twitter I picked up this quote from Dr Tayo Adeyemi in the UK – it really caught my eye:

You are either a blessing or a burden; an asset or a liability; a problem solver or a problem. Your choice!

And that got me thinking through all the people I know. It was really easy to categorise them either on one side of that ledger or the other. I’m imagining you’d be able to do the same.

So then, I began to imagine a world in which more of us became assets rather than liabilities. In fact – call me crazy – imagine a world where everyone is an asset and no one is a liability. Just imagine how different this world would be.

Of course, you and I can’t change every one of the 7+ billion people on the planet. But there is one person we can change. Ourselves!

On Balance – Which One Are You?

I wonder if you consider yourself for a moment, on balance – are you a blessing or a burden to the people around you. An asset or a liability. A problem solver … or a problem?  

The Apostle Paul, sitting on death row in a Roman dungeon, wrote this to his friends in Philippi:

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. (Phil 2:3,4)

It’s an exhortation to be a blessing instead of a burden.

Imagine a land locked sea like the Dead Sea for instance, where all the rivers flow in, but none of them flow out. The only way the water gets out is through evaporation by the heat of the sun. And the reason it’s called the Dead Sea is because there’s so much salt in it that nothing can live in it’s water.

Our selfishness is like the Dead Sea. We want everything to flow inward towards us – we want others to be a blessing to us, we want circumstances to favour us, we want, we want, we want …

It’s all about the direction of the flow of the blessing. Many a man’s life, many a woman’s life (writes  S.D Gordon) is just like the circumference of that Dead Sea. When everything flows inwards … it’s dead. And by experience you and I know that that’s true. 

A Transformed Life – From Liability to Asset

Paul addresses both sides of this equation in that short passage we just read.

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but instead … look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others.

In other words stop living your life trying to be blessed all the time, and start blessing others. Turn the direction of the flow from inwards, to outwards.

Be a blessing instead of a burden; an asset instead of a liability; a problem solver instead of a problem. It’s about a complete, fundamental, 180 degree change in direction from inward, to outward. 

So, you are either a blessing or a burden; an asset or a liability; a problem solver or a problem.

Your choice!

By: Berni Dymet

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Some Smiles Can Break Hearts

This is Amira, a 9 year-old girl who couldn't read or write. On the first day of school this year, this girl had almost succeeded in shattering down my fortress of patience with her naivety. She asks the silliest of questions and always at the wrong time - when I had just finished explaining the very answer to the question. But I put up with her, I know she couldn't read, so she is probably a bit slow. I know that it's a good thing that despite her disability, she still wants to learn. Most kids like her just give up trying. Even though she couldn't read, she would do all the homework that I gave and would be the first to tell me that she has finished it. I know that there is something different about this kid.,but what I did not know then was that, it was Amira's first day of school, ever. She did not go to school until she is 9. That explains why she can't read or write. 

It has been years since Amira last saw her father. He abandoned the family and left Amira's mother to support their seven children. When I asked about him, her voice was shaken a little when she answered, "Kite dah lame tak jumpe ayah kite. Tak tahu ayah pegi mane." (I have not seen my father for a long time. Don't know where he went.) I never ask again, but sometimes she would tell me stories of how her father used to buy her ice-creams. She misses him.

I took pity on this little girl's fate. So, one day I asked her. "Amira, nak tak belajar baca?" (Amira, do you want to learn how to read?). "Nak!" (Yes, I want to), she said eagerly. So that day I made a promise to myself that no matter how insanely busy I get, I will spend some time to teach this girl something. Starting from the next day, I spent every afternoon after school teaching Amira how to read and write.

One day, while she was doing one of the exercises I gave her, Amira asked me, "Teacher, boleh tak ajar kite solat? Kite tak tahu solat. Ustazah tanya, tapi kite tak tahu." (Teacher, can you teach me how to perform solat? I don't know how to. My ustazah asked, but I don't know.) I was surprised by this. So I asked her back, "Ibu tak ajar solat ke?" (Didn't your mother teach you how to perform solat?) to which she shook her head. I didn't know what to say, so I told her "Nanti balik, mintak la ibu ajar." (When you go back home, ask your mother to teach you.) and she nodded.

After my Master's classes started, I could only spend a few hours after school every Friday to teach her how to read and write. She looks forward to this and would wait in the staffroom until I finish my class. Sometimes she would fall asleep on the sofa out of tiredness, but she still wants to learn. One day, Amira came to me with her finger bleeding and her school uniform stained with blood. I took a look at the injury and asked what happened. She told me her fingers had been very itchy, so she scratched them. It looked like scabies, so I asked her,"Dah pegi klinik ke?" (Have you been to a clinic?). She shook her head. "Ibu kerja. Ibu takde masa." (Mother is working. She doesn't have time). "Takpe, lepas ni teacher bawak jumpa doktor, nak?" (It's okay, I will bring you to see a doctor after this.). I was cursing the mother in my heart. How could she let her child suffer like this and say she doesn't have time? If something/somebody is important to you, you will make time for it/him/her. I was being judgmental. So I took her to a clinic to see a doctor. It was scabies. The doctor gave her some medications and I SMSed the instructions to her mother. So since then, once every few weeks, I took her to the clinic to get the meds. Altogether, I have paid more than RM150 for this, but I'm glad I did because her scabies has disappeared and she is no longer suffering.

I've been teaching Amira for half a year already and I see progress in her. She can read now, but slowly. Today she told me she got bored staying at home for 2 weeks during the school break. She didn't have any homework to do. So I gave her a book to practice reading in her free times. She said coming to school is far more fun. She wants to learn. She wants to be able to read and write. I was so happy to hear this and after our lesson, I took her to lunch at a KFC. She was very happy. In fact she finished the whole meal. I bought another for her 11-year old brother because I know he too has not eaten anything much since morning. When I sent Amira back home, her brother came running from their 4th floor flat house just to say "Thank you".

They were smiling to their ears and it breaks my heart, somehow.

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Back to School

Four of my 3 Jujur kids during their class party.

There are still 2 weeks before schools reopen for the 2013 session, but my school requires all its teachers to start working 2 weeks prior to that, which is starting from tomorrow. I know most teachers would despise this, but I am actually quite excited. I've had enough non-working days. I won't say a holiday because even though I didn't have to go to work, I don't get that much days off anyway. I have classes to attend and assignments to burn my midnight oil doing. So it wasn't really a holiday. In the next 2 weeks, hopefully tomorrow, I hope to know what tasks/responsibilities would I be assigned to in 2013 so that I can start planning. 

This year I was the Setiausaha HEM, a role I actually quite like. Partly because I'm used to doing paperwork and I have this sense of accomplishment when I am able to get stuff properly organised. Back in school, I was the secretary of virtually every club and organisation that I was in. The only club in which I wasn't the secretary was the Badminton Club. I was the Vice President. For next year, if I am appointed again as the Setiausaha HEM, I have a list if things that I want to make better. All the reports will have due dates that must be adhered to as I don't want to have to chase people asking for their reports. All the files will be properly organised and everything must be in place. Everything will be ready before the due dates set by PPD. Also, maybe the HEM Unit should have a blog? 

I was also the leader of the English Language Society, a role I think I didn't do too well. I managed to raise RM200 through selling Teacher's Day card. I also set up a blog but I didn't update it regularly (so I don't tell people about it). Clubs and societies aren't given much focus at my school as we concentrate more on sports. So there were only a few club meetings that could be organised in 2012 and in most of the meetings we just play language games. There wasn't any field trip organised, even though this was part of my plan. So next year if I'm still in charge of the club, I want to set a list of attainable goals and work hard to achieve them by the end of the year. The blog will be improved and regularly updated. Members will be more involved in club activities and there will definitely be at least one field trip.

I was one of the AJK Bilik Guru. I had an informal discussion with our leader and we can see some improvement that could be done to the room but in the end nothing happens. We were too occupied with our bigger responsibilities and had been putting things on hold until the end of the year. Next year, whoever in charge of Bilik Guru should make it a more inspiring place. Teachers should feel at home and highly motivated all the time. It's not that the Bilik Guru is a bad place to be. It is a comfortable place but it's nice to see some changes every now and then. Oh, and I'm thinking of buying a new refrigerator so maybe I can donate the old refrigerator to the Bilik Guru - if, of course, there is a space to put it. 

I hope I won't be a class teacher next year. The only thing I love about being a class teacher is being able to decorate the class and organise activities for the students. I hate it when last minute work is given and unfortunately for class teachers, this happens regularly. Otherwise I would love to be a class teacher. If I am appointed as a class teacher, I will make the classroom as comfortable as it can. I will repaint the class (with of course, the permission from the GB) with colours that stimulate learning and I will make sure the furniture is in excellent condition. All students' desks will have covers to prevent vandalism, which is not a nice sight. Students will rotate their seats weekly so that no particular students will have the disadvantage of sitting at the back of the class all year round. Incentives for full attendance will be given on a monthly basis, as I did back in 2011, when I was the class teacher of 4 Usaha. Wait, I do hope to be a class teacher. 

Well, that's all for now. I have a lot more things to write but I think I have bored you enough. I know these are all easier said than done, but there's nothing wrong in being a little ambitious. Thank you for taking some time to read this. Please comment below and share your thoughts.  

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